IDEAS for May 2015

Friday, May 1THE SHARING ECONOMY AND THE PUBLIC GOOD, Part 1 Who wins, who loses and what's destined to change if a sharing economy is sustainable: business, society or the state? This is a special 2-part event produced by IDEAS in partnership with The Munk School of Global Affairs. Featuring economic and social theorist Jeremy Rifkin, author of The Zero Marginal Cost Society: The Internet of Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism along with a stellar panel of economic and political thinkers, including lawyer, mediator and political leader Bob Rae, economist and author Anita M. McGahan, and moderator Janice Stein, Director of the Munk School of Global Affairs. Part 2 airs Friday, May 8th.

Monday, May 4THE ENRIGHT FILES Our monthly Monday night feature with Michael Enright, host of The Sunday Edition, in conversation with some of the most original and influential thinkers of our time.

Tuesday, May 5LIFE IN THE PUBLIC SQUARE The life and thought of Richard John Neuhaus divides into two parts: born in Canada, he became a Lutheran pastor, and an outspoken critic of the Vietnam War. Later, when based himself in New York, he converted to Catholicism, and became a champion of neo-conservativism -- earning him the moniker "Rasputin of the Right". Randy Boyagoda of Ryerson University has written an intellectual biography: Richard John Neuhaus: A Life in the Public Square. He talks to host Paul Kennedy about it. They're later joined by Catholic thinker and Ideas contributor Michael W. Higgins and historian of religion, Molly Worthen from the University of North Carolina.

Wednesday, May 6THE MONSTER AT THE END There's a lot of anxiety about the supposed 'end' of the book as we know it. But exactly what are we so worried about? In a lecture given at the Canadian Literature Centre at the University of Alberta in Edmonton and in interview with Paul Kennedy, novelist Lynn Coady explores what happens if we separate the idea of 'the book' from the experience they've traditionally provided.

Thursday, May 7LITERARY AMPHIBIUM Winner of the 2015 Blue Metropolis Grand Literary Prize Nancy Huston is interviewed before an audience in Montreal by Paul Kennedy. They discuss the reasons why she writes fiction in French (and then translates it -- herself -- into English). And why she writes non-fiction in English (and translates it into French).

Friday, May 8THE SHARING ECONOMY AND THE PUBLIC GOOD, Part 2 Who wins, who loses and what's destined to change if a sharing economy is sustainable: business, society or the state? This is a special 2-part event produced by IDEAS in partnership with The Munk School of Global Affairs. Featuring economic and social theorist Jeremy Rifkin, author of The Zero Marginal Cost Society: The Internet of Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism along with a stellar panel of economic and political thinkers, including lawyer, mediator and political leader Bob Rae, economist and author Anita M. McGahan, and moderator Janice Stein, Director of the Munk School of Global Affairs.

Monday, May 11CLAIMING SPACE Public spaces, from parks to sidewalks to transit, have a huge impact on millions of women around the world. They can help make life enjoyable and safe, or dangerous -- sometimes even lethal. Contributor Megan Williams travels from India to Vienna to talk to sociologists, city planners, and cultural historians. She reveals how the conception and design of public space profoundly affects the lives of women who move through it.

Tuesday, May 12WHY MONEY ISN'T EVERYTHING The world over, alternative currencies are helping societies solve key issues. In Japan, volunteers earn redeemable friendship tokens when they care for the elderly. In Brazil, one city's garbage crisis disappeared when it gave people bus tokens for their trash. We're also hearing about Toronto's tool library and workshop space. Sheetal Lodhia explores how healthy communities can be built without money.

Wednesday, May 13MCLAREN IN 4D - ARTIST, ACTIVIST, DREAMER AND FRIEND At the close of filmmaker Norman McLaren's centenary, Crystal Chan tells us the story of the movie magician about whose films Picasso once said: 'At last! Something new in the world of drawing!' Winner of hundreds of awards, including an Oscar, McLaren founded the National Film Board's animation studio. At the time, his inventions seemed quirky. Now, they seem prescient. McLaren's short films are little riddles for the eye: political, personal, and above all else – playful.

Thursday, May 14IDEAS FROM THE TRENCHES - TOO DUMB FOR DEMOCRACY There are 50,000 PhD candidates in Canada, toiling away in relative obscurity on things their friends and families often don't understand. This is the fourth episode in our series attempting to turn a young scholar's PhD work into an hour of radio. Producers Tom Howell and Nicola Luksic meet University of British Columbia student David Moscrop. He argues that modern democracy just isn't built right for our brains... and so it dooms us into dumb thinking. He's got an idea for fixing that.

Friday, May 15THE KILLAM PRIZE Every year the Governor General hosts a gala to celebrate the recipients of the Canada Council Killam Prize. Five prizes for five individuals who have contributed significantly to their field of study. Each individual receives $100,000. Paul Kennedy interviews this year's winners and finds out what inspires their work.

Monday, May 18WACHTEL ON THE ARTS A monthly IDEAS feature with CBC Radio's celebrated arts journalist Eleanor Wachtel. Each month, she takes an in-depth look at what's new, exciting and important in film, opera, the visual arts, theatre, dance and architecture.

Tuesday, May 19THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME T.E. Lawrence -- Lawrence of Arabia -- was one of the most brilliant and enigmatic figures of the 20th Century. A groundbreaking archaeologist and cartographer, to say nothing of his legendary skills as a military tactician and leader in the First World War, he was also uncannily prescient about the shape of the world to come. As the great powers carved up the world, he foresaw the geopolitical fault lines that plague us still.

Wednesday, May 20 - Friday, May 22DANTE: POET OF THE IMPOSSIBLE Dante Alighieri was a poet and civic leader in Florence. His enemies had him exiled, hoping he'd disappear from history. But instead he wrote a masterpiece, The Divine Comedy. In an unprecedented move, he made himself the hero of his own epic poem and attained literary immortality. On the 750th anniversary of his birth, we feature this encore presentation of our three-part series.

Monday, May 25SHAME ON YOU(TUBE) We are watched. Caught on ubiquitous cell phone cameras. Tweeted in real time. Judged by a capricious social media jury. Andy Warhol predicted that everyone would have 15 minutes of fame. Kelley Jo Burke ponders how we live in a world where everyone might have 15 minutes of shame.

Tuesday, May 26 - Wednesday, May 27VESTIGIAL TALE Analysing stories is usually territory claimed by writers, critics, and university scholars. But recently, evolutionary psychologists have begun to look at the human propensity for storytelling from a scientific perspective. Why are we humans such suckers for a good story? Literary critics find the answer in story structure, characters, and plotlines. The literary Darwinists find the answer in evolution.

Thursday, May 28FIRE AND BLOOD: THE PARIS COMMUNE OF 1871 After years of political turmoil, the citizens of Paris rose up against the government and declared independence. The Paris Commune of 1871 was a model for the revolutions of the 20th century- freedom, liberty, equality, were the cries. But the violence it unleashed, the use of propaganda, the demonizing of the "other", all foreshadow the abuses of state power to come -- in the 20th century until today.

Friday, May 29DEEP DOWN DARK Thirty-three Chilean miners were trapped underground for sixty-nine days, before being rescued, back in 2010. During their hot and hellish underground imprisonment, they agreed to share their story with only one writer. Pulitzer-Prize winner Hector Tobar describes their collective experience, in conversation with Paul Kennedy.

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